The findings from the report – Out of School, Out of Pocket, come as head teachers and teaching unions warn that school budgets are not keeping pace with rising student numbers and schools can no longer afford to offer the full range of activities that parents expect.

According to the data, roughly six in ten parents feel they have to find the money because their children simply love their chosen activities, while 35 percent said they just want to give their kids every possible chance in life.

Almost one in three said they want to look back and say they did as much as they possibly could for their kids, while a further 20 percent want their children to be more successful than they were.

LIE-INS ARE A THING OF THE PAST

Over one in ten admitted they felt guilty if they didn’t give their children every opportunity, while a further seven per cent admitted they felt pressure to keep up with other parents.

And according to the study, it’s not just the financial burden parents have to shoulder, with the average parent spending 156 hours (that’s six and a half days of every year) ferrying their children to and from activities.

In fact, modern parent’s dedication to their offspring also means the days of lazy weekend lie-ins are a thing of the past, with most of us having to be up and out by 8am on a Saturday AND a Sunday, according to the report.

The survey of 2,000 parents by education communications consultancy GK and Partners found that the average British child does three activities a week with swimming lessons and clubs proving the most popular out of school activity (45 percent), followed by sports training (28 percent), dance and ballet lessons (18 percent) and gymnastics (17 percent).

‘INDULGENCE ISN’T CHEAP’

Mark Cooper, a spokesperson at GKP, said parents probably felt they had little choice but to splash the cash: “If cash-strapped schools can’t provide an education in the broadest sense then parents will do what they can to plug the gaps – even if it means cutting back elsewhere.”

But he pointed out that they were doing it for the best of reasons: “It’s sobering, and somewhat comforting, to learn that the number one reason why parents spend so much money and time on out-of-school activities is that children enjoy them.

“To be sure, ambition and future success are also significant motivations, but it’s heartening to learn that parents agree to pay for those extra guitar and dancing lessons not principally because they think their children will land a better job, or to impress the neighbours, but because they want to indulge simple childish pleasure.

If cash-strapped schools can’t provide an education then parents will do what they can to plug the gaps – even if it means cutting back elsewhere.

Mark Cooper

“That indulgence isn’t cheap. But the spending on activities that can be loosely termed ‘non-academic’ – sports, music and drama – rather than on extra tuition, suggests that parents are interested in giving their children an ‘education’ in the broadest sense rather than merely helping them to improve their school grades.”

One in ten pay for painting lessons, while a further ten percent shell out for drama classes and a hopeful four percent said they pay for extra lessons, tuition and coaching to make the children famous in their chosen field.

A staggering 89 percent of the mums and dads polled said they thought being a parent was more competitive than it had every been when they were children.

What parents will pay for

Sports/clubs/training/lessons – £260 a year, £3,380 in a childhood

Dance/Ballet/clubs/lessons – £208 a year, £2,704 in a childhood

Drama/clubs/lessons – £156 a year, £2,028 in a childhood

Extra tuition/maths/English – £468 a year, £6,084 in a childhood

Musical instruments/lessons – £208 a year, £2,704 in a childhood

Swimming/lessons/clubs/admission – £312 a year, £4,056 in a childhood

Gymnastics/self-defence/Judo/Karate – £416 a year, £5,408 in a childhood

Arts/Painting/lessons/clubs – £156 a year, £2,028 in a childhood

Total: £28,000

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Over half (51 percent) of parents admit they are probably putting too much pressure on their youngsters, while 78 percent claim their children completely take for granted everything they do for them and 39 percent think their children live in a bubble – unaware of the realities of life.

However, 29 percent say that wrapping their children up in cotton wool is a good thing.

The report shows that the average British parent spends a staggering £355 a year on equipment, kit and lessons which are quit or dumped after as little as two weeks.

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Parents will spend £260 a year on sports clubs, totalling £3,380 a childhood[/caption]

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Mark Cooper says that ambition and future success are significant motivations but the main focus is on ‘simple childish pleasure’[/caption]